The Department of Justice is eager to work with corporate insiders and other individuals who have knowledge of false claims being submitted to the government. Our attorneys understand that whistleblowers who may have participated to some degree in submitting these claims may be reluctant to file a qui tam lawsuit. For those who elect to move forward with their claims, it is important to remember that your suit will be filed under seal. Furthermore, the federal False Claims Act and certain state laws provide additional protection for whistleblowers.
Video Transcript
Some of the common concerns that whistleblowers have are ones regarding anonymity and protection against retaliation from their employer. All whistleblower cases are filed confidentially, or “under seal”, meaning that the accused, or the employer, will not see the documents or know that a lawsuit has been filed until the government completes its investigation or in some cases, until the court orders the matter unsealed. It is rare to maintain confidentiality through the conclusion of the case and whistleblowers are wise to go in to the litigation accepting that their identity will ultimately be known.
A whistleblower receives protection of the law under the False Claims Act; it is illegal to be discharged, threatened, harassed, suspended or discriminated against in any other way for filing a whistleblower claim or even for reporting fraudulent activity. If you would like to speak to a whistleblower attorney regarding your concerns about reporting fraud, please do not hesitate to contact us today. Any discussions you have with our attorneys are protected by the attorney-client privilege, which means that the discussions will remain confidential.
Immunity from Prosecution
Although the person blowing the whistle may have knowledge of the fraudulent activity, he or she is not usually the person who conceived of and benefited from submitting false claims to the government. In most cases, the government does not investigate the conduct of the whistleblower.
However, to the extent that the whistleblower was involved in planning the fraudulent activities, our attorneys may be able to negotiate immunity in exchange for the whistleblower’s full cooperation with the investigation. The government is often eager to grant whistleblower immunity in cases where the individual blowing the whistle has knowledge of a vast corporate scheme involving executive-level employees.
Whistleblower Lawsuits Filed Under Seal
The whistleblower lawsuit must, by law, be filed under seal. This means that all records relating to the case must be kept on a secret docket maintained by the court. Copies of the lawsuit are only given to the United States Department of Justice, the local United States Attorney, and the assigned judge of the District Court. The lawsuit and all other documents filed in the case remain under seal for a period of at least 60 days. At the conclusion of the 60 days, the Department of Justice may file a motion with the court requesting that the case remain under seal while it continues its investigation. In general, these motions usually request an extension of the seal for six months at a time.
Whistleblower Laws by State
Many states have laws protecting whistleblowers who report false claims submitted to state and local governments. In certain instances, lawsuits may be filed under these state laws if the fraud involved the misuse of state funds or other types of fraud against a state government. Because the Medicaid program is funded jointly by federal and state governments, lawsuits involving hospital and pharmaceutical company fraud are often filed under both a state-law whistleblower statute and the federal False Claims Act. The following are laws enacted by states that protect individuals who blow the whistle on fraud against a state government:
- California False Claims Act
- Colorado Medicaid False Claims Act
- Connecticut False Claims Act
- Delaware False Claims and Reporting Act
- District of Columbia False Claims Act
- Florida False Claims Act
- Georgia Taxpayer Protection False Claims Act
- Hawaii False Claims Act
- Illinois False Claims Act
- Indiana False Claims and Whistleblower Protection Act
- Iowa False Claims Act
- Louisiana Medical Assistance Programs Integrity Act
- Maryland False Health Claims Act
- Massachusetts False Claims Act
- Michigan Medicaid False Claims Act
- Minnesota False Claims Act
- Montana False Claims Act
- Nevada Submission of False Claims to State or Local Government
- New Hampshire Fraud and False Claims Act
- New Jersey False Claims Act
- New Mexico False Claims Act, New Mexico Medicaid False Claims Act, New Mexico Fraud Against Taxpayers Act
- New York False Claims Act
- North Carolina False Claims Act
- Oklahoma Medicaid False Claims Act
- Rhode Island False Claims Act
- Tennessee False Claims Act, Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act
- Texas Medicaid Fraud Prevention Act
- Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act
- Washington State Medicaid Fraud False Claims Act
- Wisconsin False Claims for Medical Assistance Law
To speak with an experienced whistleblower attorney, please contact us today. Following an initial consultation, our attorneys can help you determine whether a whistleblower lawsuit is appropriate and will work with you to protect your confidentiality.
